The Path through the Heavens: A LitRPG Wuxia Series (The Heavenly Throne Book 6)

by Yuri Ajin

  “No!” the inspired and stoked dorgans shouted in unison.

  “Are we afraid of that jerk Tassarion?!”

  “No!”

  “What do we live for?!”

  “For the Pack!”

  “What do we fight for?!”

  “For the Pack!”

  “What do our hearts beat for?!”

  “For the Pack!”

  “Yes, brothers! All for the sake of our Great Pack!” Aldus hit his chest with his fist, grinning. “And for its sake, we must take revenge! This human deserves neither forgiveness nor mercy! When he loses this fight and leaves the arena, I want you and the rest of our brothers gathered here today to bring him to justice! Bring him to me! And if anyone dares to stand in your way — don’t be afraid! The Pack is with you!”

  “The Pack is with us!”

  ***

  Kai and Ranmaru stood a hundred feet apart.

  The audience was still noisy and restless in anticipation of the upcoming show. Everyone knew that countering Ranmaru’s Desolation of the Weak was nearly impossible, even for peak-level Exorcists. What could a mortal do?

  “Take out your swords,” Ranmaru said calmly. “I don’t want to attack an unarmed opponent.”

  Kai knew that Ranmaru would play fair even with his life and freedom at stake. He was an honorable cultivator and a man of his word, so he’d serve Tassarion even without a collar.

  This was Ranmaru’s path. His honor.

  “Only if you do the same,” Kai replied, looking at his relaxed opponent.

  “I don’t need to.”

  “Then neither do I.”

  “So be it.” Ranmaru sighed, astonished by his confidence. He raised his left hand, revealed his Abode mark, and pointed it at Kai. “An honest duel.”

  “An honest duel.” Kai did the same, and their marks lit up. Both of them could now use ki and Forces on each other until someone surrendered or was incapacitated. Unless they proclaimed a duel to the death, neither could kill their opponent lest they risked breaking the Law.

  Not wishing to play around, Ranmaru instantly activated the Desolation. This way, he showed respect for Kai, who risked a lot challenging him to this duel. Ranmaru didn’t know what prompted such a crazy act — pride, stupidity, or something else — but he respected the courage.

  A slithering ribbon of will instantly reached Kai’s Source. The audience couldn’t see it, but Kai’s will surrounding his body allowed him to see the glittering snake approaching him.

  He let the serpent bite into his Source.

  Ranmaru observed him with a stone-cold face. He had no doubt that Kai didn’t have even a sliver of a chance of defeating him, which is why he was astounded when he didn’t see ki pouring out of his opponent’s body.

  Occasionally, this process stretched out if his opponent had high endurance. But for someone’s ki to remain in their bodies after the attack... That had never happened before.

  Seems that I’ve underestimated him... Ranmaru thought, his eyes were shining.

  Observing the fight, Tassarion also suspected that something was off. He didn’t want to believe that Kai could actually resist the Desolation.

  Meanwhile, the noises and booing coming from the crowd began to subside. Kai was still standing. Only a couple of seconds had passed, yes, but no one ever remained on their feet after Ranmaru used the Desolation on them.

  “What’s happening? Why isn’t Ranmaru attacking?”

  “Shouldn’t he have drained his ki by now?”

  “Is he giving up? I heard that if he wins, he’ll be free again. How could Lightus allow this?”

  “He can’t give up. Not with the slave collar on.”

  “Then what’s going on?”

  “How could a mortal resist such a powerful skill?”

  The students whispered, perplexed.

  “So he wasn’t lying.” Sator smiled with a sigh of relief.

  “Did Ranmaru activate the Desolation?” Elea asked. She could only assume what was happening in the arena.

  “He did. I can barely feel it through the protective barrier, but it’s definitely active. I fought with him more than once, so I remember this feeling well,” Sator replied.

  “Then we can only hope that Kai is strong enough,” Elea whispered, clenching her fists.

  “Maybe we should finally start the real fight?” Kai proposed.

  “How are you doing this?” Ranmaru couldn’t help but ask, still trying to take at least a grain of Kai’s energy. But his ki wouldn’t budge.

  Desolation allowed suppressing the will of any living creature. But not all of it. Only that part which was responsible for energy control.

  But if the target’s will didn’t yield or turned out to be stronger, then Ranmaru couldn’t steal the ki. In the entire Abode, there were only two students who could resist his skill — the Eswix siblings.

  As for the rest of the Cloud Ten, they used other methods. For example, Raiden’s astral body was polluted by the energy of Death, which made his ki toxic to Ranmaru.

  On the other hand, it wasn’t as effective on Yukie and Mikasa as it was on ordinary Exorcists, which gave the two enough time to activate Full Transformation, allowing their beastly essence to suppress the skill.

  There was also Lightus. No one knew if he was capable of resisting Desolation or not. It was impossible to find out as well because he’d end the fight before his opponent had time to realize it.

  There was still Guts and Two, with whom Ranmaru had never fought. But his gut was telling him that he wouldn’t be able to defeat either of them.

  Ranmaru couldn’t pull a single grain of ki out of Kai. He felt that Kai’s will was weaker than his, thanks to which the Desolation reached his Source. However, even after gaining access to it, Ranmaru couldn’t do anything about it. It was all because of Kai’s energy-controlling ability. Previously, he managed to resist the Gates draining his ki, so he could prevent another cultivator from doing it, too.

  “So, what do you say, shall we?” Kai asked again.

  Ranmaru nodded, smiling. The initial shock was replaced by joy. He was happy to meet such an opponent.

  “I didn’t expect this, I admit. I hope the fight will be interesting.”

  Without another word, he plunged into the depths of his soul. Feeling two luminous vessels there, he reached out to them with all his being.

  In reality, no more than a second passed when Ranmaru opened his eyes sharply. The merging was complete, and now the power of the two Senior Spirits raged in his body.

  His appearance had changed. Yellow and blue colors began to appear on his skin and two mystical symbols of the corresponding colors appeared on his face as wind and sand swirled around him.

  Plate armor, summoned from the Ring, appeared on his body as he unsheathed a wide two-handed sword from the scabbard that always hovered behind him, and activated the amplification and movement techniques.

  Kai felt a surge of energy. This fight was supposed to not only decide his fate but also bring a lot of new things to his own Path. A strong opponent was always good in terms of one’s development.

  And Kai didn’t plan to hold back.

  The Body Gates, Ultimate Focus, and Life Rampage were activated in the blink of an eye. Not a grain of power leaked out. But he didn’t stop there. Like Ranmaru, he also reached into the depths of his soul.

  A scarlet flash illuminated his figure. The Medium Sword Spirit shared its energy and Forces with Kai, simultaneously changing his appearance. A tattered cloak and ephemeral pieces of armor appeared around him. The ends of his hair became scarlet, and an unknown symbol lit up on his face. Kai was now in much better control of this state.

  But his preparation didn’t end there. After the Sword Spirit, another force began to break out of his soul.

  Kai spent the last day before the fight doing only one thing — absorbing the Senior Spirit of Space with the destruction attribute. The transformation process of the captured Void Offspring
was finally completed so he only had to absorb the Spirit he had created.

  To Kai’s surprise, the new Spirit didn’t affect his appearance in any way. There was just another symbol on his face, dark purple in color, and the space around him was now constantly slightly distorted, which made his figure somewhat blurry.

  As expected, it was much easier to use Forces of the Path of Space in this state. Kai appreciated the internal changes, slowly turning his head toward one of the VIP boxes.

  Tassarion shuddered when he saw a pair of violet fiery eyes gazing at him. He sensed that he was clearly visible, as if centered in a spotlight, even though he was sitting in a special seat, hidden behind a very powerful array. It should’ve been impossible to know where he was... and yet, Kai knew.

  Tassarion leaped forward and approached the protective dome. He felt and understood much more than any of the spectators. The realization that he had made a mistake came over him.

  The power bestowed to Kai by the Senior Spirit of Space had strengthened the Five Weightless Steps Technique exponentially. The space in front of him literally ripped apart, but this lasted for such a brief moment that almost no one could see or realize what had happened. For everyone except Tassarion, Ranmaru, Sator, Raiden, and Aldus, Kai simply disappeared.

  He instantly appeared in front of Ranmaru. Swinging his swords, he was aiming to cut the cultivator in two but Ranmaru managed to block. The two blades collided, and Ranmaru felt a surge of power that could easily tear open the ground and sweep aside even an unprepared initial-level Elementalist.

  Luckily, he had already activated the Unbreakable Sand Armor Technique, covering his body with compressed sand, which absorbed ninety percent of impact, redirecting some of the damage into the ground. The technique required a lot of ki, but for an Exorcist with a strong foundation like him, who merged with two Senior Spirits at once, it was a small price to pay for good defense.

  A sand whip that came from behind Ranmaru’s back cracked between Kai and him. At the same moment, Kai’s right hand flew to the side, along with the sword in it. But he didn’t even blink. The severed limb instantly teleported to its original place.

  The fight continued.

  Chapter 20

  THE SPECTACLE OF ICE AND SAND

  Sand projectiles left Ranmaru’s body at insane speed and struck everything that stood in their way. Not having time to keep track of them, Kai began to retreat when he felt danger from behind.

  A shadow loomed above his head. A giant sand hand descended upon him but he managed to teleport away. Upon landing, however, he felt a sharp pain. Looking down, he saw that his legs and feet were pierced by a dozen spears that burst from the ground. In retaliation, he released a dark mist of Yin particles that destroyed the sand weapons, freeing himself. But Ranmaru was already next to him, too close for Kai to teleport.

  A whirlwind of golden sand covered Ranmaru’s huge blade. Each grain rotated at such a speed that it could easily pierce even the thickest of armors, forming a veil that hid several air blades from everyone’s sight.

  The sword hit Kai like a meteor. He didn’t have time to dodge, so all that remained was to defend himself. The swords collided with a metallic screech. The whirlwind was suppressed by the Gravity Break Blade technique.

  The golden tornado flew several feet up but didn’t collapse. Instead, the sand formed several thin and durable spears that shot down toward Kai at great speed a moment later. At the same time, whips burst out of Ranmaru’s sand armor.

  A lot of attacks hit Kai at once, only to bounce off and collapse the next moment. The Impenetrable Repelling Field technique did an excellent job of defending him.

  Then the battle of swords began. Both opponents used techniques to strengthen their weapons, but they were yet to use any additional attacks.

  Ranmaru once again used the golden whirlwind to strengthen his blade. As for Kai, he created two sword techniques at once — the Blade Release and the Gravitational Break Blade. In addition to this, he also prepared the Sword with Fluttering Wings Technique, allowing him to use energy with Forces, which constantly circulated through his body from sword to sword and made the weapons feel like natural extensions of his arms. This technique let his sword mastery reach a new level, changing his fighting style and making every blow even more deadly.

  Circling around Ranmaru, he repeatedly brought his blades down on him.

  But Ranmaru was in no way inferior to his opponent. Even without using ki in his fighting style, he fought skillfully and, making good use of his greater speed and more powerful defense, even managed to push his opponent back.

  The fight delighted and amazed the spectators.

  Kai was slowly beginning to yield. Ranmaru’s attacks were stronger and his movements were faster, which gave him the upper hand. He easily blocked both swords, simultaneously pushing Kai back and inflicting more and more damage.

  Realizing that his usual close combat method wouldn’t work on Ranmaru, Kai decided to use the idea that came to him during his training with Sator. He was going to use a style only he could.

  Ranmaru’s sword flew toward his stomach. He should’ve deflected the attack or dodged, but instead, he ignored it. The blade went into his body, but the Cold Void didn’t allow him to even grimace.

  This stone-cold reaction stunned Ranmaru for a second. This moment of surprise could’ve cost him his life but he managed to raise his left hand at the last moment and defend himself. Kai’s blade broke through the sand and collided with the artifact armor beneath. It didn’t pierce it, but it still left a noticeable dent and did some damage. Ranmaru numbed the pain and filled his hand with energy to enhance passive regeneration. Kai seized the chance and jumped back, getting himself off his opponent’s blade. His wound healed a second later, and he immediately rushed back to Ranmaru.

  He didn’t waste time defending or dodging if the wound wasn’t critical or fatal, thereby gaining more opportunities to attack. The approach was risky but, more often than not, it was very profitable.

  Ranmaru was receiving more and more damage. Realizing that Kai had the ability to recover at an insane speed, which meant that he could afford to ignore minor wounds, he decided to switch up his tactic.

  His sword shone with bright light. Air condensed around the blade and then there was an explosion, most of which was directed at Kai. And although the Impenetrable Repelling Field Technique handled most of the blow, he was still thrown to the edge of the arena. Landing on his feet, he strengthened his defense just as several air blades sent after him reached him. The attacks collided with the barrier, and then three more explosions occurred. When the dust settled, Kai was only slightly hurt.

  “I have a proposal,” he said, dusting off his clothes. “If I win, you’ll join my faction. It’s unofficial, of course. But that’s only temporary.”

  “And if you lose?” Ranmaru asked, not even thinking of mocking his hope of winning.

  “In all honesty, I have nothing to offer except for my friendship.” Kai shrugged. “Initially, I thought to say that I’d continue helping your sister with her wound for free... I suppose you already know that I was the one who made the potion for her? But I realize that even if I win, it changes nothing. I’ll help her anyway. I want to understand what happened to her as well.”

  Ranmaru didn’t feel that he was lying. And the fact that Kai didn’t want to influence him through his sister surprised him slightly.

  “We’ll see.” He nodded.

  He didn’t agree to the offer, but he didn’t refuse either. The honest approach had paid off. Kai sighed. Now all he had to do was win.

  The first exchange of blows ended. The time had come for the second round.

  Ranmaru made the first move. The wind suddenly blew in the arena and a myriad of grains of sand began to fly up. The Sandstorm was gaining momentum.

  Tassarion chuckled and grinned. He fought against Ranmaru more than once so he knew that if he activated this technique that meant that he was go
ing to end the fight.

  Forming and maintaining the Sandstorm took a tremendous amount of ki. However, it was worth it. Thanks to it, Ranmaru activated his main element and became exponentially stronger. The wind whirled around him, obeying his will, dragging tons of sand with it.

  Both duelists disappeared from sight. The sand blocked the audience’s view, forcing them to follow the fight by identifying the participants by their auras.

  With an extremely high level of spirit perception, Tassarion saw everything that was happening in the sandstorm. He was already anticipating Ranmaru’s victory when bloody snow began to fall within the protective barrier of the arena. It appeared literally out of nowhere, but in less than a few seconds, the number of snowflakes was equal to the grains of sand.

  In addition to a sandstorm, a snowstorm began in the arena.

  However, what shocked Tassarion was the immense power that emanated from this snow.

  “Low-quality, Royal-rank?!” he blurted out. “He’s a mortal! How old is he?! He’s obviously younger than Ranmaru. How could he master the Force of Fusion so early? What is this?!” His eyes widened even more. For several seconds, he silently listened to his spirit perception. “This isn’t the Path of Cold...” he finally said, feeling something that wasn’t perceptible to the spectators.

  Tassarion calmed down and his heart returned to its normal rhythm. He now looked like a cold-blooded killer. A different person. Even his sister rarely saw him like that.

  “This is some kind of concept.” He came to a conclusion that’d shock anyone in this world, where they knew only of Yin and Yang. Nobody had ever heard of the Cold Void here. “Kai Arnhard... You grow more interesting by the day... Perhaps I should rethink my plans for you. It’ll be interesting to see your potential. Let’s see what else you can do. What you’ve shown so far is still not enough to defeat Ranmaru.” Tassarion chuckled.

  The two elements collided. The struggle began. No matter how much ki Ranmaru poured into his technique, he couldn’t suppress the blizzard. Concepts were stronger than ordinary elements. What helped Ranmaru were the Spirits of Wind and Sand, which strengthened their respective elements, and the fact that his ki reserve was almost three times larger than Kai’s.